I’ve been a successful Six-Figure Freelance Journalist for ten years now, almost to the day. I started my company, CNTRL Media, back in 2014 during a time of tremendous transition in my life. It felt right, it felt scary, but most of all, it felt like something I was deeply drawn to and could no longer ignore. Taking the leap felt huge, but it also felt right.

Since then, I haven’t looked back.

Last night, as I was scrolling through my Instagram feed (as I am want to do when I unwind at the end of the day), I stumbled across a post from Parm Kaur, a poet who posts their work on Instagram.

Since we all know the algorithm has our number, I wasn’t surprised that the piece resonated with me, but rather how deeply it resonated—especially when I think about my ten-year career as a full-time freelancer.

I’ve always said that freelancing is like a choose-your-own-adventure book. You get to cover and write about what you’re passionate about, like I do: Whether it’s tech, AI, the economy, business, automotive and transportation, politics, social justice, the environment, travel, health & wellness, or more. Like me, you get to see your byline in major publications like The Atlantic, The Verge, TechCrunch, Fortune, Forbes, Fast Company, Elle Magazine, Travel & Leisure, and National Geographic. But much more than that, you can color outside the lines and find your own real freedom–because every cent you earn is completely yours.

The piece by Parm above truly resonated with me because it embodies this idea of finding your freedom to create outside of the constructs of a boss, a corporation, or an advertising goal.

Freelancing is truly about the freedom and space you create when you realize that you can, in fact, do this on your own and that you are damn good at it.

I’m not here to tell you that it’s all sunshiney days and unicorns. No. Being a successful freelance journalist takes hard work, dedication, commitment, and, most of all, honesty and transparency. There are plenty of down days when you’re chasing another late payment, or another frustrating editor who refuses to respond. There are plenty of dire statistics to make you question what you’re actually doing with your life.

But here’s the thing—I regularly connect over Zoom with past colleagues and new subscribers to my Six-Figure Journalism Jobs Newsletter to talk about the trials and tribulations of freelancing. One of the things I’ve consistently heard in the last few months is that this year is different. Successful freelancers have seen their income level off, rates have been slashed, the media landscape is shifting rapidly thanks to AI (as I wrote a few weeks ago), and more, and the advertising model is breaking down.

While all of that sounds like dire news, the thing that comes up directly after discussing how terribly someone pays or which horrific editors at high-profile outlets to avoid, is that there’s nothing better than being able to do your work, your way, on your time, and be paid a living wage for it. Every single successful freelance journalist feels this in their bones.

There is something powerful and passionate about the creative people who have been at this for a long time. They tend to see a world of work that offers massive freedom, over the noise of the dire stats you hear so frequently.

Ultimately, this all explains why I started my weekly paid newsletter, which features remote journalism and writing jobs paying a minimum of $1 per word or $100,000 per year.

I send a new newsletter out every Wednesday at 9 a.m. PT. To date, I’ve sent 54 newsletters with new journalism jobs every week.

I include editor email addresses, any pitching guides I can find, and all kinds of unique leads.

Subscribers say that they really enjoy the newsletter and that it has become an invaluable resource for their work.

As the newsletter has grown, I’ve started to receive job listings that haven’t hit the market yet (aka pocket listings) looking for talented, skilled, and seasoned professionals who deserve to make a living wage. I began this project a little over a year ago because I truly believe in the value of real, factual journalism in today’s world, and the real need to pay people rates that actually pay the rent. From where I sit, one year on, it’s been well worth the time and effort.

If you’d like to continue on this journey with me and learn how to become a successful six-figure freelance journalist, you can become a paid subscriber for just $5 per month or join me for my next Freelancing 101 session (it’s free!) in September.

I promise it will open doors you never imagined.